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Denis Villeneuve Confirms Bond 25 Talks, But Dune Takes Priority

Coming off his meticulous work on Blade Runner 2049 (our review), writer-director Denis Villeneuve would be forgiven for wanting to take a nice long vacation.

But it seems the filmmaker has no intention of taking his foot off the pedal, as he’s already begun scripting Legendary’s fabled Dune reboot alongside the Oscar-winning Eric Roth. It’s a sci-fi reimagining that has languished in the pits of development hell for years, and it may wind up averting Denis Villeneuve from Bond 25.

Four months ago, the director was shortlisted for MGM’s next James Bond film alongside Yann Demange and David MacKenzie (Hell and High Water), and though Villeneuve confirmed those talks in a new interview with The Playlist, he also admits that Dune has taken precedence over all other projects.

The thing is I don’t now about that, but listen. Daniel Craig is a very inspiring actor and I had some contact and the thing is that I’m busy right now doing Dune. But, I will say to have the privilege to work with him it would be a dream. I would love to work with Daniel and a Bond movie for me would be a treat. It’s a matter of timing, I guess.

From Prisoners to Sicario to the award-winning Arrival, Denis Villeneuve has fast become one of the hottest directors of the past five years, so it’s small wonder why he landed on MGM’s wishlist for the so-far untitled Bond 25. All we know for sure is that the mysterious follow-up will herald Daniel Craig’s final turn wielding the license to kill when it hits theaters in 2019 – November 8th, 2019, to be exact.

And while many James Bond fans (us included!) would consider Villeneuve’s appointment as a dream come true, the unnamed Bond 25 would surely be pushed back to 2021 to accommodate his busy schedule. With that in mind, we imagine the Powers That Be will begin casting the net in search of another candidate, and we’ll let you know how it unfolds.